Darkhost said:
I guess I renege on my unnecessary statement about the success of the D600...

I never thought that the picture quality wouldn't be there. It still doesn't seem as popular as the D800 or D4. I personally think the market is somewhat limited just because of the price and who it is aimed at...not because it is a bad camera.

I have been contemplating it more, but I would have to save to get it.

So as far as AF area coverage goes, I say D600 is not bad at all and probably just as expected. But to those who already got their D600's, how does the AF feel? More importantly, how does it compare to either D7000 or D800 AF if you have either one?

R8R said:
For all those screaming about the omission of the "AF-ON" button from the D600 (found on the D700, D800, etc) - reading the manual, I noticed they added this to the available choices when assigning the Fn button. Nice!

That's good to hear. Will have to see how it feels to AF with Fn button once I get my hands on the D600. I actually don't mind programming AE/AF-L to AF-ON on my D7000, it's just that the placement of the button is too close to the viewfinder so my fingers keep bumping into my glasses every time I AF.

jerl said:
Some annoyances (since I am used to my D90): they switched the zoom-in and zoom-out [...]

In a way I think it does make more intuitive sense since magnifying or zooming-in is expected to be above zooming-out... Idk :-/

The AF, at least to me, seems more accurate than the D7000 and it's quite quick. I had a lot of trouble with the outer points using the D7000... not the case with the D600. I'm confident with this one where as I stayed towards the center 9 previously.

The only thing I feel like I'm lacking now is some tele... I'm stuck at 85 at the tele end with FX. I'm scouting Craigslist for a used 80-200mm 2.8 right now..... lol

The AF, at least to me, seems more accurate than the D7000 and it's quite quick. I had a lot of trouble with the outer points using the D7000... not the case with the D600. I'm confident with this one where as I stayed towards the center 9 previously.

I'm new to Nikon and i'm afraid that the answer to this question isn't going to be one that i like but here goes.

Is there a way to change the exposure order during a bracketed set? I like [+,0,-] order. It seems that the D600 (other Nikons as well?) are limited to [0, +, -] or [-, 0, +] order. I like having the longest exposure first.

On a related note, is there no way to have a single shutter click, (or remote trigger press) fire all of the shots? It sounds like the only way to get this is to program the fn button to activate this behavior and then i guess you have to press that before pressing the shutter everytime? I hope that that isn't the case.

Is there a way to change the exposure order during a bracketed set? I like [+,0,-] order. It seems that the D600 (other Nikons as well?) are limited to [0, +, -] or [-, 0, +] order. I like having the longest exposure first.

Looking at custom function e7, I think the answer is no.

And now for some more updates:
The viewfinder seems to show you more depth of field that older viewfinders since I can see darkening of the frame with DOFP at f/2 and below, as opposed to f/2.8 and below on my D90, I suspect other FX cameras are actually the same as the D600 so nothing new here.

Also, while everyone states how much bigger the finder is I find it is actually only a tiny bit bigger than DX finders. Enough that you can tell without doing a side-by-side comparison that it is bigger, but still MUCH smaller than film cameras like my FM, maybe by about 30% in total area.

Also, I can't find the power switch option in the menu (to let you get the info screen by pulling the power switch to the lightbulb option). Maybe it will take some hunting to find where they moved it, but I hope they didn't take it out, since that was a feature I liked with the D90 and 7000.

trevisthomas said:
Is there a way to change the exposure order during a bracketed set? I like [+,0,-] order. It seems that the D600 (other Nikons as well?) are limited to [0, +, -] or [-, 0, +] order. I like having the longest exposure first.

On a related note, is there no way to have a single shutter click, (or remote trigger press) fire all of the shots? It sounds like the only way to get this is to program the fn button to activate this behavior and then i guess you have to press that before pressing the shutter everytime? I hope that that isn't the case.

On D7000, which should be identical to D600 in this regards, it's possible to change the bracketing order. I came from Canon (450D) and needless to say that was one of the first things I noticed that were "backwards" over at the dark side LOL : D

I'm not sure if this is what you're thinking of but there is a way to get all three shots from one shutter press. If you place the camera in low continuous shooting (low burst) mode and set it for up to 3 shots only then you can just hold the shutter (or wired trigger) until all three frame are taken.

Again this is from D7000 and assuming it still works the same for the D600.

iris chrome said:
On D7000, which should be identical to D600 in this regards, it's possible to change the bracketing order. I came from Canon (450D) and needless to say that was one of the first things I noticed that were "backwards" over at the dark side LOL : D

I'm not sure if this is what you're thinking of but there is a way to get all three shots from one shutter press. If you place the camera in low continuous shooting (low burst) mode and set it for up to 3 shots only then you can just hold the shutter (or wired trigger) until all three frame are taken.

Again this is from D7000 and assuming it still works the same for the D600.

The only way to get 3 shot at -,0,+ is to have the AF in autoarea then it will get 3 shot in one shutter click. If you have the AF in select point, 3d, etc... then you would have to press the shutter click 3 times.

After reading all the reviews and getting to play with one last night I ordered mine today! I have been collecting FX glass for two years and shooting it on my D40 and D90. I can’t wait to use them on FX!

KenRC51 said:
The only way to get 3 shot at -,0,+ is to have the AF in autoarea then it will get 3 shot in one shutter click. If you have the AF in select point, 3d, etc... then you would have to press the shutter click 3 times.

Focus, hold AE-AF lock, then shutter release. Or set the AF to release priority and not focus priority. This will let you get 3 frames off without the AF re-focusing.

KenRC51 said:
The only way to get 3 shot at -,0,+ is to have the AF in autoarea then it will get 3 shot in one shutter click. If you have the AF in select point, 3d, etc... then you would have to press the shutter click 3 times.

If your subject is moving or if you're focusing handheld on a close subject with a big aperture then you'll run into that problem. Do what R8R said and you should be able to shoot without lifting your finger.

Pierre3 said:
After reading all the reviews and getting to play with one last night I ordered mine today! I have been collecting FX glass for two years and shooting it on my D40 and D90. I can’t wait to use them on FX!

Went to Best Buy here in San Diego to compare the D600 vs. D800 (which I own). Take into consideration I've owned the D7k as well -- which was also compared and on display. The D600 is meatier and a little taller than the d7k, feels better in hand, but the VF is not as large as the D800's VF. I tested both D600 & d800 with the 24-85VR (BB also sells this lens separately). The D800 has marginally faster AF, and perhaps a LITTLE more accurate. Maybe not the best lens to test with, but it worked nonetheless.

Anyway, yes the D800 has larger AF array, but not that big a deal. Live view on D600 is a little different. Better? I don't know, since I NEVER use Live view on ANY camera. The video on D600 is very good, as is the D800 of course. The D600 feels better made than d7k, and slightly more flimsy than the D800. The D600 feels, looks, and handles BETTER than the 5d Mk.3 they had on display as well!! I like the mode dial on the D600 a little better than my D800, but HATE the locking crap. It just slows me down. I will say the 5.5FPS is every bit of claimed speed. It is a fast little DSLR!! And yes, the placement of the ISO button is strange....but at least you know exactly where to find it without removing eye from VF.

For high ISO, I compared both D600 & D800 at 3200 and 6400 inside the well-lit store. Granted, it wasn't RAW files but they were nearly indistinguishable -- I don't know which is better. I loved using it in the 15-20 minutes I spent. It's a very, very good offering --- even at $2,100, and they will sell like $1 steaks. Considering the 5d2 is still around $2,000 (which is WAY TOO HIGH) and the 5d3 is $3,000 (or close) this D600 is a wonderful value. I still can't believe they pulled this outta the hat. Cheers to Nikon!! Let's not forget the d800 is an EXTREME VALUE at $3,000 (and I still can't believe they pulled THAT ONE off) and our collective expectations are unrealistic regarding what the price of the D600 should be. If it had been available in April/May, or I'd known it was CERTAIN to be released -- this would have been what I bought.

I love the heck out of my D800, but I could've spent the extra grand towards the 70-200 VRII. I got a phenomenal new price on my D800 ($2,925 shipped) so I can't look back now. If I was on the fence as a new FF buyer or coming from a D700/Canon 5d/5d2 there would be no hesitation in buying the D600 as my top choice. I'm a landscape shooter myself so the D800 was a natural choice coming from the 5d2 -- not to mention my 16-35VR that will be here Monday!! Highly recommended! Don't waste time over-researching reviews because: a) it's a Nikon FF and b) very little IQ difference between this and D800. Be happy and enjoy what is becoming a more budget-friendly hobby.

After all my agony, in waiting for the D400 i made a mistake and held the D600!
iT WAS NICE!
Nearly bought at Jessops for £1995, I saw the NR post about Amazon, and bought it at £1620!!
Battery is charging downstairs! :)

I am probably missing something simple, but why does the flash pop up almost always in Auto Mode, even when I am at 1/160th. How do I fix that? (Not that I want to use Auto, but I can't figure this out)

I can see how to change it for M A S P modes, but why is it always popping up in Auto?

Wait, I see on page 36 of the manual that the no-flash mode on the dial might be what I should use? Is that just like auto, but only with no flash? I guess the real question is why is the flash popping up at fast speeds like 1/160th and can I change that for the Auto mode?

roombarobot said:
I am probably missing something simple, but why does the flash pop up almost always in Auto Mode, even when I am at 1/160th. How do I fix that? (Not that I want to use Auto, but I can't figure this out)

I can see how to change it for M A S P modes, but why is it always popping up in Auto?

Wait, I see on page 36 of the manual that the no-flash mode on the dial might be what I should use? Is that just like auto, but only with no flash? I guess the real question is why is the flash popping up at fast speeds like 1/160th and can I change that for the Auto mode?

Thanks for any help!

Not 100% sure how to make it not pop up in Auto but yes, the no flash mode is auto without flash. It's likely that you can't really change it in Auto...

I scored a 80-200 2.8 AF-S off of Craigslist from a nice lady that went into a medical profession and didn't have time to learn photography because of it. She was hanging on to a D100 so it seems this lens has been sitting around for a while without much use. I looked into the light through all the elements and saw nothing but clarity and the external condition is almost perfect. $850.

I am now banned from making photography related purchases until 2013. :)